The Shadow and the Queen
by TheRealSokka
Summary: Of the four shadows Viren sent out to the other human kingdoms, only one failed in its mission.


As much as Queen Aanya loved her birthday, by the time the sun was setting on the royal palace she was very glad for it to be over. With a sigh, the young regent let herself fall onto her bed and just enjoyed the complete lack of voices and noise around her. She was truly ready for some peace and quiet.

It wasn't that she didn't enjoy the attentions, the presents and the slices of peach-and-pear crumble that the people of Duren bestowed on her on this day. She was very grateful for it, in fact. She was also embarrassed by it every single time, because what had she done to deserve all that? Not all that much. This day specifically always made her feel like she should be doing a lot more.

But when Aanya saw the way people's eyes lit up when they caught sight of her, not even her embarrassment could dampen the warmth that spread through her chest. She liked to think she wasn't a bad queen and she was trying her best to do right by her people; and those friendly looks and cheers gave her reassurance that she was on the right path.

Even when that path was becoming as uncertain as it was now.

"Another year, and the kingdom is still standing." Aanya told the ceiling. She sat up and let her legs dangle off the bed. She glanced at the balcony, which offered a spectacular view of the palace and the city below. The sun was just dipping beneath the railing and a gentle breeze was blowing into her room. The young queen felt herself shiver, even though it wasn't cold – it rarely ever got truly cold in Duren. Passing it off as a result of her tiredness, she shook her head and reached for the drawer by the bed.

It was time for the last small tradition of the day. Unlike the lanterns and the speeches and the feast, this one was purely her own. Her hands carefully grasped the small bundle in the drawer and unwrapped it, uncovering the old, blue-bound diary. It was frayed at the corners; worn out from so much reading, but it was another form of reassurance that Aanya couldn't bear to part with. Opening it up at the exact page where she had left it last time, she began to read.

_It isn't easy, being queen. Being queen of Duren brings its own set of troubles, you might say. Our people can be a bit – hot-headed is the term foreigners like to use, I believe. There's more than a grain of truth in that. To be a good ruler to this country, you'll need a bit of that fire in yourself, little sun. Fire, compassion and generosity. If you take care of your people, they will take care of you._

A sad smile crept on the young queen's lips. Like everything inside this book, she had read those words more times than she could count. She could almost hear them spoken in her moms' voices, telling this to her tiny, two year old self. That was about the time when they had made this diary. Aanya couldn't even truly remember their voices, but when she opened these pages it was like she could still hear them. She blinked the stinging in her eyes away and turned the page.

_Finding a good monarch to rule by your side is no less of a challenge. Ideally, your strengths and weaknesses should complement each other; though in the end you will have to follow your heart. That approach has worked out well for your parents, if I do say so myself._

_But that doesn't mean you should fall for the first beautiful lady or strapping young prince who comes along!_

_Stop it; you'll just embarrass her!_

Aanya gave a choked laugh and turned her head away before tears could fall onto the precious paper. This part was always hard: seeing the two sets of cursive handwriting almost entwined on the page, her mind's eye couldn't help but conjure up the image of her mothers teasing and talking over each other while they were writing in the diary. The fact that both of them had frequently, stubbornly interrupted the other's advice on the paper and the other had not erased it spoke for itself. But it did make it hard for Aanya not to imagine an outcome where she could have joined in the conversation and laughed along with them

_Moving on to less embarrassing advice: If there is one person in the castle you'll choose to humour, let it be the baker. She will conjure amazing things when she is in a good mood, and let you know if she is not._

_Which is most of the time. Have we done something wrong?_

Still, Aanya had come to accept her parents' deaths a while ago. Usually, she had enough composure now not to burst into tears while reading their words. She wiped at her eyes, but they just kept flowing.

This was the mage's fault. Hearing him tell the story of her parents' heroic sacrifice, at the council of kings, had opened that door again and caused her a new wave of hurt. But Aanya was still grateful that he had told it. She loved her mothers with all her heart and she knew they must have been amazing people. She just wished she could have gotten to know them.

_There is great responsibility in ruling. You must always think carefully before you act. _

"I hope I'm doing the right thing." Aanya told the diary. She could no longer see it clearly through her tears.

Voting against the council of kings had been her decision, and Aanya still stood by it. She couldn't see the sense in a war with Xadia, whereas she could see its dangers clearly. Agreeing would have meant sending hundreds, perhaps thousands of her people to their deaths, and she couldn't allow that to happen. Her highest duty as queen was to keep them safe.

But the mage and Lord Regent of Katolis, Viren, had made a compelling case, too. If they did nothing and Xadia attacked them first, the consequences might be even more brutal. Aanya would have loved to state confidently that her refusal to wage war now would not result in an even greater risk to Duren in the long term, but she couldn't.

Nobody could say for certain if war really would break out – and Viren couldn't, either, Aanya thought stubbornly. For her part, she would prefer working towards peace as the long term goal, instead, but again she couldn't be sure that it would work out that way. Maybe some elves did want to overrun the human kingdoms; that possibility was there. She was only fourteen years of age; not nearly enough to be certain her decision was the right one.

But she had made it and she would stand by it.

Another breeze from outside made Aanya shiver. Goosebumps rose on her arms. She put down the diary and looked up.

Someone was standing on the balcony.

Aanya blinked. Through her tears, the person appeared blurry and unfocused. "Bila?" she called, but even as she said it doubt crept into her mind. Why would her handmaid come into her room now she had already retired? And why was she just standing there?

There was no answer. The figure started stalking towards her.

The hairs on Aanya's neck rose. She jumped off the bed, just as the figure broke into a run. Something glinted silver in the moonlight. Running purely on instinct, the young queen dived beneath her bed, wincing as the wood left splinters in her bare arms. Behind her, she saw a curved silver blade embedding itself in the floor where she had stood a heartbeat ago.

She came rolling out the other side and jumped to her feet. Across the bed, the attacker wrenched their blade free and turned towards her. Even with Aanya's vision clearing, they still seemed strangely out of focus. Their body had no solid form, shifting like a column of smoke. From the top of the column, a set of glowing purple eyes stared at the young queen as the creature slowly walked around the bedstead. They held no emotion whatsoever; not even the intent to kill her. But that was what the creature was here for.

"Who are you?!" Aanya called, her arms raised defensively. Adrenaline had chased away her sleepiness and her entire body was strung tight with energy. Too late it occurred to her that she should have shouted for her guards instead.

The smoke creature lunged at her. Aanya spun out of its way, catching a brief glimpse of long, pointy ears as it went past her. _An elf?_ She had no time to dwell on that thought as the attacker corrected its course and came at her again. Aanya managed to dodge a second time and ran for the wall opposite the balcony, where her quiver and bow hung. She needed a weapon.

Her fingers closed around the bow handle and she wrenched it off its hook. In her haste she accidentally upended the quiver and all but a handful of the arrows fell out. The queen cursed, but there was no time to correct her mistake as she blindly dashed away from the wall. A rush of air blew over her neck and she knew that the assassin's blade had only missed her by inches.

"Help!" she finally shouted. She could only hope someone was in earshot. The only way open to her was the balcony now. Aanya ran towards it. Without stopping she nocked an arrow to her string and, when she was only meters away from the railing, she turned around.

The assassin was stalking towards her, now at a slower pace. The smoky arms held the blade loosely at its side. It knew it had her cornered.

Aanya aimed for its chest and fired.

The arrow went straight through the smoke, blowing it apart momentarily. The assassin stopped for the shortest of moments until its substance drew back together, then it continued its advance.

With fumbling fingers, Aanya nocked another arrow. She was afraid, and out of options. She couldn't seem to hurt this thing, but she was under no illusion that it could very well hurt her. How could she stop something that had no solid form? She fired anyway, this time aiming for the head. It had no more effect than the first.

From beyond the door Aanya could hear running footsteps. It distracted the young queen for a second too long: the assassin lashed out and she tried to get out of its way, losing her balance. A hiss of pain escaped her when the tip of the blade cut across her ribs. Her back hit the floor, leaving her defenceless. The assassin stopped, towering above her, and raised the sword.

_The sword_.

The door of her bedroom burst open and four guards rushed inside, all with weapons drawn. They came to an abrupt stop when they saw the smoke creature, and her lying in front of it. "Queen Aanya!" one exclaimed.

The sword descended in a flash. With a cry, Aanya brought up her bow and quiver. The silver blade cut through both, but it bought her just enough time to scramble out of its way and avoid the fatal blow. She managed to get to her feet. The creature came after her. Then two of the guards jumped between her and it.

A third – Alyn, the captain of her security detail – gripped Aanya by the arm and all but dragged her out of harm's way. "My queen, you have to get out of here!" he ordered.

Aanya didn't argue; she was shaking from her near-death experience. But when they had almost reached the door, she looked over her shoulder. The assassin was cornered by three guards, though still fighting. Their weapons weren't doing anything to it. As she watched, one of the guards cried out and clutched her sword arm. Immediately, the assassin shifted focus to the next.

"No!" Aanya said, breaking away from her protector. These men would die if she didn't do something, and as the assassin had stood over her an idea had entered her mind. Her eyes fell on the weapon strung across the captain's back. "Give me your bow!"

"My queen, I really must insist…"

"Trust me!" she implored him. "I think I can stop it."

Alyn stared at her, the conflict between his duty and his trust in her battling plainly on his face. Finally, trust won out. He unslung the bow from his shoulder and handed it to her. "What do you want me to do?"

"Distract it." Aanya ordered. Briefly, it occurred to her that she was asking a trained soldier to put his trust in the combat prowess of a child. But there was no time for that kind of self-doubt now. The assassin had already disarmed a second guard and was now bearing down on the last. "Go!" she told Alyn.

The captain nodded and charged into the fight, yelling to get their opponent's attention. The shadow turned with superhuman speed and they locked swords.

Taking a deep breath, Aanya nocked two arrows to the foreign bow string. She skirted around the edges of the fight, trying to get an angle. Then it occurred to her that she didn't need to; she was the shadow's target and it would focus on her if she presented one.

With what she hoped was a battle cry, she jumped onto the edge of the bed and leapt off it towards the shadow. The burning eyes rose towards her and the creature raised its weapon in expectation. Alyn swung his sword in an effort to stop it, but it passed right through the smoke. Before the assassin's from could draw together again, Aanya fired.

Everything seemed to happen in the span of a heartbeat.

Her arrows left the bow string. With her own bow, she would have been more precise, the thought flashed through her mind.

Her guards looked on with wide eyes as she sailed towards the assassin's blade.

Both arrows hit the blade – the only solid, _real_ thing in that smoky mass – knocking it out of the shadowy hands.

The blade clattered to the floor.

The assassin's form dissolved into mist. One second it stood there menacingly, the next it was completely gone.

Aanya landed on her feet. Her heart seemed to want to beat out of her chest. Breathless, she stared at the spot where the creature had stood just a moment ago. Everyone else in the room was doing the same.

The sun had completely set below the horizon now, steeping the room in hazy twilight.

"Good shot." Captain Alyn finally broke the silence. He hadn't lowered his sword yet. He sent Aanya a look that was half acknowledgement, half concern. "Are you alright? Did it hurt you?"

"No." Aanya managed. "Not worth mentioning. But send for a healer." she ordered, glancing at the guard who was clutching her arm.

"It can wait, my queen." the woman got out. The stubborn look on her face told Aanya enough to know that none of them would leave the room while she might still be in danger.

Aanya bent down and carefully picked up the sword from the floor. Its silver shine seemed to have dulled a little, but it was possible that that was just her imagination. "I thought that shadow had to be bound to the weapon, but I wasn't sure." she muttered.

"We were fighting that?" one of the guards said incredulously, staring at the blade.

"No we were fighting whoever conjured that shade to hold it." Alyn corrected grimly. His eyes caught the queen's. "This was an elven assassination attempt on your life. We have to strengthen security around the castle; they might still be nearby."

Aanya frowned. "Why would the elves want me dead?"

"I don't know Queen Aanya." He lifted the tip of the blade and inspected it. "But this is an elven weapon, and that looked like elven magic, too."

"Did it? Have you ever _seen_ elven magic?" Aanya inquired.

"I – have not, my queen."

"I haven't, either. Until we do, let's not make assumptions."

"But who else would want to murder a human monarch? Perhaps what the regent of Katolis said was true and they are preparing for war. With all due respect, my queen, we will not allow them to attack you unchallenged!" Alyn said. There were fierce nods of agreement from the other guards. "What are your orders?"

_You must always think carefully before you act._

Aanya squared her shoulders. "Make sure the city is secure, as you suggested captain." she said. "Until that is done, wake up the mage. I want his opinion on this – creature. We won't be provoked into retaliating against anybody until we know for certain who did this."

The silver sword weighed heavy in her hand. The young queen had to resist the impulse to throw it away. It had almost ended her life and she had never felt as scared as in that moment. The other kings would almost certainly see the sword as indicative of Xadian hostility without requiring further proof first. But, Aanya thought, her parents wouldn't have. They would have waited and tried to learn more. And that was the judgement she would go with.

* * *

**Don't mind me; just continuing writing out every random idea that pops into my head after Season 3. This is literally based on one image in the credits and a paragraph on the shows web page. Enjoy!**


End file.
